Volume : IX, Issue : IV, April - 2020

Leptospirosis - A Deceptive Yet Neglected Malady

Dr Pmp Singh, Dr Ms Mustafa

Abstract :

Background : Armed Forces personnel are at increased risk of contracting leptospirosis during relief work following floods and other natural disasters. Because of lack of awareness of the disease, leptospirosis has acquired the ominous status of a “neglected disease.” Materials and methods : Two cases of leptospirosis reporting to two different service hospitals located in the southern part of the country are reported here. Both cases were admitted and subjected to detailed epidemiological investigation. While the first case succumbed to his illness despite intensive management, the second case had a mild illness and was discharged after treatment. Results : Case 1 This 52 yrs old male ex-serviceman presented with a history of high grade fever with chills and rigors of 4 - 5 days duration. Test for IgM antibodies for leptospira was positive. He finally expired due to multi-organ dysfunction on the eighth day following admission. Case 2 A 22 year old wife of a sailor, presented with high grade fever, bodyache and sore throat of one week duration. She was positive for Microscopic Slide Agglutination Test (MSAT) and Microscopic Agglutination Test (MAT) using paired acute and convalescent phase sera; which showed a four-fold rise in antibody titre. She did not develop any complications and was discharged following a course of tab Doxycycline 100 mg BD for 05 days. Conclusion : Troops deployed in disaster affected areas also constitute a high-risk group. Flooding after torrential rains is remarkably favourable for leptospirosis. As seen in the above two cases, the clinical signs and symptoms are highly variable and may range from subclinical to fulminant and potentially fatal manifestations. If untreated, the mortality rates may be high in severe cases.

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Article: Download PDF    DOI : https://www.doi.org/10.36106/gjra  

Cite This Article:

LEPTOSPIROSIS - A DECEPTIVE YET NEGLECTED MALADY, Dr PMP Singh, Dr MS Mustafa GLOBAL JOURNAL FOR RESEARCH ANALYSIS : Volume-9 | Issue-4 | April-2020

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